Fenix LD10/LD20-R4 (XP-G R4) Reviews: RUNTIMES, BEAMSHOTS, COMPARISONS and more!

[MojaveMoon07]

I've seen enough people report that their LD10 R4 has a donut hole that I'm hesitant to buy one.

I looked into buying one with an OP reflector, but I was surprised by my findings. Out of twelve flashlight retailers, just three specify the reflector. Out of those three retailers, just one (4Sevens) says that it is selling an LD10 R4 with an OP reflector.

BUT ... 4Sevens' sister site fenix-store says that the LD10 R4 it sells has a smooth reflector. I don't think that 4Sevens would sell the LD10-R4 on one of its sites with a smooth reflector and an OP reflector on one of its other sites, right ?

Can anyone offer any input about this matter ?

Here are my findings: (link)

 

[Nake]

4sevens says smooth, must have corrected it.

 

[evgeniy]

is now available LD20-R4 (XP-G R4) with OP reflectors ?

is now available LD20-R4 with flat back button case (as in old L2D CE) , for stable standing ?

---
R4 is cooler , than q5 ? (Ideal for me is old XR-E P4 color ~~ 5600 K)

 

[Andrius]

I was testing my flashlight Fenix ld10 r4, conclusions:

Med level: the elements of race and Panasonic infinium Recyko +

Panasonic infinium: 5h 12min
GP Recyko + 5h 26min

Hi mode:
Panasonic infinium: 1h 51min

Turbo mode:
Panasonic infinium: 50min

By the way my charger: BC-700

 

[Minjin]

I still use an L2D CE, probably P4, from a little over 3 years ago. I love the light. I can see from the graph that a new version would put out a decent amount more light. Would it actually be noticeable though and worth an upgrade?

Another question, from looking at this graph:

It seems like the L2D is superior to the LD20 when using the same bin LED (Q5). Did the circuit change for the worse when it went from L2D to LD20? That seems like a pretty significant difference.

 

[selfbuilt]

I still use an L2D CE, probably P4, from a little over 3 years ago. I love the light. I can see from the graph that a new version would put out a decent amount more light. Would it actually be noticeable though and worth an upgrade?

It seems like the L2D is superior to the LD20 when using the same bin LED (Q5). Did the circuit change for the worse when it went from L2D to LD20? That seems like a pretty significant difference.

Although it would be brighter, probably not enough to really make you sit up and take notice.

The reason for the runtime difference on my Q5 samples is unknown. I suspect it likely just reflects batch variability in Vf.

 

[BGater]

I just got an LD10 R4 from 4Sevens, it has the smooth reflector . I didnt see an option at the time for OP. It has a very faint donut hole. I can only see it on an indoor wall shot, outdoors its amazing. Its not nearly as bad as the hole on my Solarforce XPG-R5 drop in's .

 

[bbb74]

My LD20 R4 (which has exactly the same head as a LD10 R4) has a somewhat noticeable donut, even outside. It does annoy me a bit, but others have reported it didn't annoy them so your mileage may vary. There's no donut on my nw quark (floody and smooth), and maybe(??) a very faint donut on my quark turbo but not really sure on whether I'm seeing things there or not - definitely far better than the ld20 anyway.

 

[selfbuilt]

it has the smooth reflector . I didnt see an option at the time for OP.

Yeah, I don't understand why so many makers are using smooth reflectors with XP-G emitters. Unless throw is critical (which would only be the case for dedicated throwers), OP reflectors seem to do a much better of reducing the centre beam donut effect. :shrug:

 

[MojaveMoon07]

Earlier this month, fonarik conducted several interviews with Fenix in person. In the third interview (link), I saw information regarding two aspects of the Fenix LD10/LD20 R4 that were brought up by selfbuilt.

One thing that has changed is the screw threads – they are now square-cut on both the tail and head sections. While this is a nice feature in-and-of itself, it means the new versions are no longer backward-compatible with the parts from earlier generations. Up until these new lights, you could happily mix-and-match body and tailcap tubes from any previous Fenix version (i.e. LDx0-Q5 all the way down to the original LxD-P4). Now, you will need to stick with parts from this new generation. :shrug:

Fonarik.com: Why did you change the thread type in the new models?

Fenix: The new thread type is more up-to-date and of better quality and the grip is better.

Yeah, I don't understand why so many makers are using smooth reflectors with XP-G emitters. Unless throw is critical (which would only be the case for dedicated throwers), OP reflectors seem to do a much better of reducing the centre beam donut effect. :shrug:

Fonarik.com: In the new flashlights there are no texturized reflectors. Are you planning to make them in the LD and PD series?

Fenix: No, the heating temperature for plain reflectors is less then in the texturized ones. If the temperature goes higher than 130 C, then it's not safe.

 

[selfbuilt]

Fenix: The new thread type is more up-to-date and of better quality and the grip is better.

I can certainly believe that - square-cut threads are definitely more durable, and it makes sense that Fenix would improved them over time. It is just unfortunate that they are no longer backward-compatible with early editions.

A solution would be to make the new body tubes and tailcaps widely available individually, but I don't seem to see that anywhere. Of course, that could simply be a dealer issue, not a manufacturer issue (i.e. low demand?)

Fenix: No, the heating temperature for plain reflectors is less then in the texturized ones. If the temperature goes higher than 130 C, then it's not safe.

Frankly, I'm finding that a little hard to understand. Textured reflectors have been in use for a long time - they were originally developed to smooth out imperfections in filament-based incandescents. As we all know, those run run extremely hot!

I don't know what exactly "not safe" refers to here (i.e. safe for what, the emitter or the user?). But there are a lot of more heavily-driven LED lights that use textured reflectors. :thinking:

 

[safety first]

Are Fenix lights recommended for mounting to weapons, i.e AR15?

 

[thedeske]

Impressive a/b on the LD10 Q5/R4 here.
http://fonarik.com/test/indexen.php

selfbuilt is not overstating in his review

 

[noisebeam]

Are LD20 or 10 bodies with the new square thread available anywhere?

 

[Batang Regla]

Thanks for this review.

Correct me if im wrong.

The light output of ld10 and ld20 are the same the only difference is the longer battery life of the latter.

Here in my country the q5 is still available. Do i buy the q5 or r4?

 

[tandem]

Correct me if im wrong. The light output of ld10 and ld20 are the same the only difference is the longer battery life of the latter.

Almost but not quite fully correct. In the max-output ("Turbo") mode you get a little more output, with a flatter output trace (meaning more consistent output at max), in addition to more runtime.

In high (not max), medium, and low modes you basically get more runtime with about the same output.

You should note that the author performed these tests with Sanyo Eneloops, a high quality low self discharge rechargeable cell - you need to use a similar quality of cell to achieve similar output levels, consistency, and runtime. Alkaline (non rechargeable) cells won't give you maximum performance. (edit: but if you need to use Alkaline cells, the LD10/20 is one of the very best lights to use them in!)

The output difference is noticeable but not huge. Here are some beam shots using different scenes for the LD10, and here is the same for the LD20.

Do i buy the q5 or r4?

With the links above you can compare. Aside from the obvious output differences, check the output-runtime charts in selfbuilt's review. More light for more minutes seals the deal for the R4 for me at least. (edit: I bought a LD10 for its small size; it lives in my pocket virtually all of the time. The larger LD20 wouldn't be as comfortable to carry every day.)

 

[selfbuilt]

The light output of ld10 and ld20 are the same the only difference is the longer battery life of the latter.

tandem explained it well - you can see all the differences in my output/runtime figures.

I would personally recommend the R4 version for the improved performance, but you can judge for yourself from the output/runtime figures.

 

[Batang Regla]

tandem, sefbuilt

Thank you very much.

For beginners like me, where can i read beginners led flashlights techinical stuff. I backread at led flashlight thread but the conversation is so advanced. I cannot understand the terminologies.

 

[tandem]

Off topic but: You could do worse than to read carrot's guide to high-end flashlights -- maybe start at the "basic terminology" page. Also check within the forums to posts made "sticky" - often these have lasting knowledge value which is why they are made to show up at the top of other, newer, posts. Welcome to CPF, stick around and the knowledge will flow to you to be sure.

 

[Batang Regla]

tandem,

I will study the link you gave me.

Xpg, Xre...Xr xr....... I got confused when i backread.

Thank you so much for your help